Sharks aim to avenge earlier loss to Islanders
After being blanked by Robin Lehner earlier this month, the San Jose Sharks may not get the chance to earn a win over the New York Islanders? new starting goalie this season.
Coming off their best game of the season, the Sharks wrap up a two-game homestand against the Islanders on Saturday night.
On Oct. 8 -- and in his New York debut -- Lehner posted his ninth career shutout as the Isles won 4-0. The Swedish veteran made 16 of his 35 saves in the final 20 minutes.
But he may not be available when New York (3-3-0) and San Jose (3-3-1) tangle at SAP Center.
Lehner (2-1-0, 2.09 goals-against average, .935 save percentage) took a puck off the mask in the third period of Thursday's 7-2 rout of the Los Angeles Kings. Coach Barry Trotz didn't immediately say if Lehner would be available Saturday, saying "we'll see where he is."
If Lehner cannot go, then Thomas Griess would likely get the nod against his former team. The native of West Germany was 17-16-3 with a 2.52 GAA and one shutout in 44 games (32 starts) with San Jose between 2008 and 2013.
Griess stopped all five shots he faced against the Kings and has surrendered eight tallies in four games (three starts).
Whoever gets the nod in net, he'll face a San Jose team that returned from a middling five-game road trip and used a three-goal third period to top the Buffalo Sabres, 5-1, on Thursday.
"We created enough offense on the road trip to score goals. We didn't score. We had to stick with it. We did tonight. We got rewarded and hopefully we can carry that over," Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said.
Logan Couture recorded his third career hat trick and first since Nov. 21, 2017, against the Islanders.
The veteran center has seven points (five goals, two assists) in 11 career games versus New York, but only a goal and an assist in five matchups at SAP Center.
After being held off the scoresheet against New York less than two weeks ago, Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Brent Burns has six assists in a four-game streak.
The Islanders go for a split of their four-game road trip after setting a season-high for goals scored on Thursday. Valterri Filppula led the way with two goals and an assist, while Scott Mayfield set a career best with three assists.
"The biggest thing is winning. That's really all I care about. It doesn't matter how many points I have," Mayfield said.
Mayfield has a goal and four assists through four games. He had five goals and 17 assists in 83 games from 2013 through last season. His only during this campaign came against the Sharks.
While it's still early, other veteran Islanders are overachieving.
Filppula has four goals in six game after notching 11 in 81 contests with the Philadelphia Flyers last season. Casey Czikas has goals each of his last two games, giving him three in five games. Czikas pro has never scored more than nine goals in a season.
"I have to trust everybody can play. I have to trust that everybody can contribute. If we can do that, then we're going to be a hard team to play against," Trotz said.
The Islanders have outscored the Sharks, 12-4, while winning each of the last three meetings. New York is also looking to win two straight in northern California for the first time since Dec. 15, 1998, and Jan. 29, 2000.
